Raspberry Deliciousness

One of the things that I'm going to miss about summer dinner parties is Raspberry Lambic.  It's technically a beer, but it's sweet and bubbley and so delicious.  So refreshing during the hot, sticky summer.

Although, I am enjoying this cool, crisp autumn weather we're FINALLY getting.  Feels like Halloween!

Dirty Arnold Palmer

'Tis the season for weddings... and wedding showers!  Yesterday, I had to pleasure of hosting my good friend Victoria's wedding shower and it was a big success.  Whenever I sign up to do this stuff, I always forget how much prep and planning goes into these things.  I am so fortunate to have a wonderful husband that is eager to help out and loves hosting parties as much as I do!  (I'll be posting Michael's red pepper hummus and Camembert fondue recipes later this week - they were quite a hit!)

But let's start off with the signature cocktail: The Dirty Victoria Lawrence.  Well, it's real name is a Dirty Arnold Palmer but we switched it up for the occasion!  It's wonderfully refreshing with a hint of mint and an iced tea base - perfect for a light summer party drink.

INGREDIENTS
Sweet Tea Vodka
Citrus Vodka
A Bunch of Mint
A Bag of Lemons
Unsweetened Ice Tea
Lemonade
Club Soda (or sparking water)
Ice*
*You can use regular ice but Nicole (she's a bartender part-time) made some ice with just water and mint for the look, and also made ice cubes using 1 cup sweet tea vodka and 2 cups water with mint leaves. Optional and a little extra work, but worth it because it's so pretty! 


DIRECTIONS
Fill highball glass with ice.  Put one shot sweet tea vodka and one shot citrus vodka.  Squeeze in 2-3 wedges of lemons (use a lemon press or just make sure you catch all the seeds).  Throw in some mint leaves (maybe about 5 or 6 depending on how big your leaves are and how much you like mint).

Pour into martini shaker... and shake!

Pour back into highball glass and add equal amounts of ice tea, lemonade and club soda.

Serve with a sprig of mint on top.

Here's a photo of Nicole serving up Victoria's signature cocktail at the shower.  Aaaaaaah... refreshing!

Sweet Nectar of Summer: Sangria

This weekend of 4th of July party hopping is the perfect time to whip up a batch of my famous Sangria.  Over many years of adding more fruit and trying new juice combinations, here's a Sangria recipe that is always a crowd-pleaser (originally taken from epicurious.com)

INGREDIENTS
5 bottles of red wine (Cabernet Sauvignon "Two Buck Chuck" from Trader Joe's work well)
1/2 cup brandy
1/4 cup Cointreau or Triple Sec
1 quart mango nectar (make mango ice cubes if you have leftover juice)
1 cup lemon juice
1/4 cup superfine sugar
1 quart chilled lemon-lime soda
Thinly sliced fruit of your choice: Apples, oranges, limes, any type of melon, kiwi, strawberries, blueberries, grapes (cut in half), peaches... you get the idea.  (This weekend I'm using watermelon, oranges, lemons, strawberries, blueberries, nectarines and grapes.)

DIRECTIONS
Note: The longer you let the fruit sit in the wine, the yummier it turns out.  I'm starting 2 days in advance.

Slice all the fruit.

Pour wine, liquor, juice and sugar into large bowl.  Stir.  Add fruit. (If you don't have a lot of room in your fridge - like me - I found that you can just pour 2-3 bottles into a bowl with the rest of the ingredients and just put it in the fridge.  Put the remaining bottles of wine in the fridge too so they are chilled when you add them to the punch bowl or cooler just before serving.)

Add lemon-lime soda and ice cubes right before serving.

Garnish wine glasses with with extra fruit or mint sprigs and serve to family, friends, and most importantly YOURSELF!